Alright then. We'll see. Rockets have better coaching than a lot of these playoff teams do. And they defend as well as any team. After they beat the Thunder and Warriors in back-to-back games last week - totally locking down Shai Gilgeous-Alexander and Stephen Curry. They lost their swagger after those two impressive wins because quite frankly they clinched the 2nd seed. It's like earlier in the season when the Rockets beat the Cavaliers two times in a row and followed that up with a statement win at Boston. Their best three-game stretch of the season. They're capable of beating anybody when they lock down defensively and hit wide open shots.

They'll be motivated again when the playoffs start. Coach Ime Udoka will have them ready to play. They haven't been motivated lately. Once they clinched the 2nd seed they went into a preseason mentality. I'm not saying that was right or wrong, but they decided to rest for the playoffs. At this point you want to have your best energy for the playoffs. Fred VanVleet is an old man compared to the rest of the team. He needed the rest more than anybody. He's the one guy on the roster, NBA champion, that knows what it takes to win it all.

It would be a mistake to overlook the Houston Rockets in the playoffs. If that happens the Rockets will cruise to the 2025 Western Conference Finals. And the Rockets will have the home court advantage the first two rounds of the playoffs which is absolutely huge for a young team. Protect the home court and win every home game. Do that and they'll be playing in the 2025 Western Conference Finals.

This post was edited by MADmartigan on Apr 12 2025 10:16am

There's no real hype for the Clippers-Warriors game right? Twolves favored by 21 and the Nuggets will be playing the Rockets reserve

Would have been nice if that game was truly a h2h for avoiding play in

Wrong
If Wolves and Nuggets win, Clippers have to win or else they're 7th seed

Thank you

Def watching then

This post was edited by ZxFamily-GuyxZ on Apr 13 2025 01:14am

The fact Pat can drop 40 makes it clear that pretty much anyone can drop 25+ if given the shots

The suns covered the spread today right? i think it was 13.5 but would appreciate some1 double checking- ty

Clippers - Warriors was so good

Finally West playoffs is here

Yep

Rockets treated the last three games of the season like the preseason. The starters they played only played until halftime.
That was likely the smart move. 2nd seed. They open up the first round on Sunday. Just waiting to see who's the 7th seed.

It's either going to be the Warriors or Grizzlies - winner of that 7 to 8 Play-In game - and truthfully I just want the GS Warriors!!
Because the Warriors have been our kryptonite forever. They've beaten us in every playoff series. This is a chance at redemption.

Last meaningful game the Rockets played which clinched the 2nd seed. They won at Golden State. Jimmy Butler had 13 points.
Old Steph was 1-10 shooting (1-8 threes) for 3 points. Big bad Draymond was all talk. The Rockets are young and ready for this.
The Rockets have a swarming defense that's elite. They can hound every offensive threat that Golden State has. I'll take that series.

If it ends up being the Rockets vs. Grizzlies in the first round, instead of the Warriors, I'm going to feel a little disappointed. I want the Dubs.

In fact the last two meaningful games the Rockets played. They got it done on the defensive end in wins over the Warriors and Thunder (SGA stuffed!)
You can make a real case for Amen Thompson getting some 'defensive player of the year' votes. He was absolutely fantastic and elite on defense.



Also I'm not too focused on this right now. But the Suns finished 36-46. Rockets have their unprotected first-round pick swap for June 25.
If the Phoenix Suns end up winning the NBA Lottery. The Houston Rockets will claim the 1st overall pick. A 3.8% chance to be the 1st pick.

Highest percent chance teams can have at winning the NBA Lottery is 14%. So a 3.8% chance isn't as crazy. Those odds have won it before.
What's more is the Rockets have a 17.5% chance to end up with a Top 4 pick courtesy of the Suns. This draft ain't bad. Top 4 pick is still good.

Regardless of what lottery pick the Rockets end up getting from the Suns. Unless it's the 1st overall pick for Cooper Flagg. More likely to trade it.
The Rockets can put together the finishing touches on a championship team this summer. We're lacking that one more piece. Still good enough.

This post was edited by MADmartigan on Apr 14 2025 08:21am

That Morant pass off the glass to himself was insane